Heavy News by Katha
Stranger times… The title of VULTURE INDUSTRIES latest album (from 2017, released via Season of Mist) couldn’t be more fitting than these days. We live in challenging times, forced to be focused on the basics of life for a while. But, if you keep your eyes opened, you can see that nice creative ideas are popping up everywhere.
Norway’s Vulture Industries started a mission to make things “A Little Bit Better” by sending personalised messages to friends and families of music fans in a format of their choice.
Not groundbreaking – But if it brings a smile on someone’s face, that’s great, isn’t it? And the artwork by Costin Chioreanu is amazing! So let this lovely bird spread its wings.
Front man Bjørnar comments on the feel-good campaign: “We can’t change the situation, but we can make it a little bit better! At this moment most of us live in the shadow of covid-19. Some are sick, some are isolated, some are losing work, some have lost dear ones and some are sitting on huge stockpiles of pasta and hand sanitiser. Apart from washing our hands, keeping to ourselves and following regulations, we can’t really fix it. But we can make a small contribution in making someone’s troubled day a little brighter.
In the past people used homing pigeons to carry messages. Now we offer you the use of homing vultures in sending your message. So if you want to send some encouraging words to a friend, or just want to confuse a relative, we can send out a post card, e-mail or Facebook message on your behalf.
Send your instructions to mr.vulture@vulture-industries.net or send us a message on our facebook page. We need to know name of sender, name of recipient, your message and in which way you want it sent. This service will remain completely free until we go bankrupt.”
About the band:
VULTURE INDUSTRIES have emerged from the vibrant rock and metal scene of Bergen, the unofficial capital of Norway’s west coast. Mostly associated with black metal, its rich music sphere in fact covers bands from all styles and directions.
The band started out under the Dead Rose Garden moniker in 1993. After several line-up changes, the new name Vulture Industries was adopted in 2003.
The Norwegians’ fourth album ‘Stranger Times’ continues and expands the band’s quest to push the limitations of genre and sound. The nine tracks are as easily as masterfully spanning a wide range from dark rock to progressive-experimental metal, while keeping their wild roaming within the boundaries of the band’s unique and bizarre sonic universe. Yet Vulture Industries manage to harness their bold mix into recognisable structures and meaningful songs throughout that do not shy away from catchiness and, quite importantly, do not fall into the trap of being weird just for the sake of experimentation.
Tune in, zone out, and enjoy!
Band Links: FACEBOOK
Website: www.vulture-industries.net
Shop: http://smarturl.it/VultureTimes
Line-up
Bjørnar E. Nilsen: vocals, percussion & keyboard
Øyvind Madsen: guitars
Eivind Huse: guitars and vocals
Kyrre Teigen: bass and vocals
Tor Helge Gjengedal: drums
Guest musicians
Herbrand Larsen: keyboard (on “Strangers”)
Hans Marius Andersen: trumpet (on “Strangers” and “The Beacon”)
Track-list
1. Tales of Woe (4:37)
2. As the World Burns (5:22)
3. Strangers (7:10)
4. The Beacon (5:35)
5. Something Vile (4:17)
6. My Body, My Blood (2:27)
7. Gentle Touch of a Killer (5:03)
8. Screaming Reflections (5:32)
9. Midnight Draws Near (5:20)
Style: Avant-garde Rock & Metal
Recording & Mixing
Bjørnar E. Nilsen & Edmond Karban, Conclave & Earshot Studios, Bergen, Norway
Mastering
Chris Sansom, Propeller Mastering, Oslo, Norway
Pretty good